This is true. I have mushrooms and I have ricotta. Now mushroom lasagne is in my head. Let’s see.
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Taking it easy this week.
For two adults in San Diego:
Breakfasts: Chocolate chip scones to start off the week.
S: (tonight) takeout - green chile burritos
Su: Grilled chicken, green chile au gratin potatoes, salad
M: Zucchini ricotta galette (puff pastry) with salad - vegetarian
T: Shrimp fried rice - seafood
W: Potato soup (made from the leftover au gratin potatoes) with bacon - soup
Th: Dinner out before an evening event
F: TBD - might eat out two nights in a row. WHOA!!
Have a good week!
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Clever! 
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Hi everyone, hope you’re enjoying your weekends. It’s a perfect October day here: sunny, mid 60s, leaves starting to change, and a slight breeze has those leaves bopping around. With Lulu going away many weekends this fall, I’ve realized that while she and I have a bunch of special beanapalooza meals that we make when LLD is away, it’s been so long since it was just LLD and me that we don’t have any special meals of our own. I’m going to try to work on that. Here’s what we ate this week:
Mon: curried beef puffs (COTM Woks of Life), Asian slaw
Tues: spinach and artichoke dip chicken (Turshen), rolls
Wed: spicy Thai coconut chicken curry soup (COTM). I loved this, no one else was a fan.
Thurs: carry out Chinese
Fri: pasta with marinara, salad
Sat: Lulu at debate event (she won!). LLD and I decided to have carry out, but realized there was a football game happening just after dinner, which meant everyplace would be crazy. Made due with cheese and crackers and stuff from the freezer.
Sun: LLD will either cook or get carryout.
Wishing you all a happy, calm, delicious week.
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Does Lulu debate at home, too? I’m suspecting if you are as good at it as she is, it becomes part of your personality! I hope you and LLD develop some special meals. You’ll need a repertoire once she goes off to college. Is that next year? How time flies…
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Yes! Next year. Very busy this year with the application process. And sure, she tries to debate at home. I try to just be as chill as possible.
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Hi, everyone. I’m enjoying the last few hours of my solo weekend (human males are in Ohio, canine male is at boarding to keep it fresh in his doggy mind). I’ve gotten a decent amount of work done around the house, including final reassembly of our basement from the flooding back in June! The last bit of repair work was completed on Friday, one day shy of 4 months since the leak. As I was putting things away, I went through two boxes of crap we’d moved into the house a couple years ago without looking: DS’s 1st grade “projects” (most with very creative spelling), about a dozen reusable grocery bags, and a digital picture frame with 10-year-old photos on it. I also used my free time to bake bread (reported on the Oct baking thread) and make fresh pasta for dinner yesterday - not sure that recipe is a keeper, but it worked well enough to mix with crispy bacon, spinach cooked in the bacon grease, and Pecorino.
My parents and brother are coming for a visit on Thursday, so I went grocery shopping this morning for regular meals for a few days and an early Thanksgiving dinner. The stores here don’t have turkeys out yet, just turkey breasts, but I wheedled the meat department supervisor at Stop and Shop to get me a turkey from the freezer they’re not supposed to sell from yet. He gave me a very long explanation of why turkeys aren’t out for sale yet. All I can say is that my dad - the only dark meat eater of the bunch - had better appreciate the wheedling/begging.
Sun: my last night of solitude. Probably Chinese takeout for me, kibble for the dog.
Mon: bulgogi steak (bottled sauce), rice, broccoli. DS will take leftovers for lunches this week.
Tues: sloppy joes, fries, carrot sticks
Weds: birria tacos (I found birria at Costco!) and refried beans. Long day at work and I’ll take the help where I can get it.
Thurs: feeding 6 - possibly pork tenderloin and noodle kugel. Yes, I recognize the irony of serving kugel and pork in the same meal, but my mom is excited to make kugel (assuming I can find gf egg noodles…). DS has already decided he won’t eat the kugel so I bought some baking potatoes too.
Fri: probably our Thanksgiving dinner… turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberries, can-berries, green beans, and pies!
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I seldom make a soup from, um, a fresh start anymore. Almost purely a means to repurpose leftovers nowadays. Add homemade chicken stock to pretty much any leftovers = good soup.
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Greetings, People.
Closing out October and inching towards the holidays. DH is methodically unpacking the outdoor holiday lights and inspecting every bulb, an annual ritual involving lots of sh*t and F&ck! My job is to stay out of the way – easy peasy!
Cooking for two adults in the PNW:
FRI: Burgers on the grill.
SAT: Turkish chicken kebabs with yogurt sauce. Couscous. Greek salad.
SUN: NYT’s cheesy mac with sausage and kale. Green salad. (Link is a guest link.)
MON: Roast chicken. Ottolenghi’s potato-apple-gruyere gratin.
TUE: Pan pizza, with extra for the freezer.
WED: Steak and shrimp rafts grilled on the Big Green Egg. Green salad.
THUR: Leftover chicken and gratin. Salad.
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A holiday tradition the world over!
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Hi, all! Still cooking for 1 in Chattanooga (though MIL is doing better!). We’re going from highs in the 80s this weekend to lows below freezing around Halloween; I hope our plants survive!
Breakfast: Pan de muerto
Saturday, October 28: Vegetable plate with charred broccoli, miso-roasted sweet potatoes, and potato salad.
Sunday: Chickpea, kale, and feta stew from Family; apple-almond turnovers
Monday: Linguine with broccoli and cherry tomatoes
Tuesday-Thursday: leftovers + Halloween candy?
Friday: Pasta with butternut squash and browned butter
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Greetings from Ottawa where the temperature has been going back and forth between fall and spring. I never know what season we are going to get when I get up in the morning. It has definitely been warm but drizzly the last couple of days but I will take it since it won’t be long before we get the white stuff. Last week’s boot shopping expedition was a flop since I went to the shoe store on Sunday and that’s the only day of the week they are closed. I should have checked the hours before I left home but I’m so used to everything open 7 days a week now I forget some business are not. Off to the shoe store this weekend but on Saturday. This is what is on tap for this week:
Today: Porchetta sandwich from a nearby deli. They make the porchetta in house and it is quite good. Salad for supper tonight.
Saturday: I have four squashes in the fridge from an overabundance of veggies from my CSA so I will bake one of them today. Off to the shoe store this afternoon and I will pick up dinner while I am out and about. The pricey butcher across the street makes nice meat pies so I might pick one up or I might go to the Italian grocer up the street to pick up a lasagna or an eggplant parmagiana. Decisions decisions! 
Sunday: Off to the movie theatre to see a matinée of The Persian Version. Basa fillet with egg sauce for dinner, rice on the side, veggies tbd.
Monday: Pork lo mein.
Tuesday: Marinated kale salad.
Wednesday: Chicken cacciatore.
Thursday: fettucine al pesto, veggies tbd.
Lunches this week will alternate between potato salad with tuna and capers and Portuguese kale and potato soup from epicurious. (I don’t have a subscription so I can’t provide a link.)
Have a nice week everyone!
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Glad to hear your MIL is doing better. Hopefully it won’t be too cold for the trick-or-treaters.
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I’d never heard of pan de muerto, so thank you for the link. And I love that when you’re solo you’re vegetarian. That’s pretty much how I am when I get that chance.
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It was a good year for squash with our CSA as well and my eaters have agreed they “just don’t like” squash soup. I have 6 of them staring at me and/or taunting me. Plus 4 pounds of sweet potatoes. . . Thinking I will roast a few and puree and then stash in the freezer for future pies/muffins etc
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Agreed about the soup. I tried a few squash soups with no success. It didn’t matter what spices I used or how much I wasn’t a fan. So now I roast them then purėe and freeze. Muffins are a good idea - I should look into that.
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Hello to everyone from the very Fall like Twin Cities of MN where the front came through today and it’s Cold (yesterday it was 61 at this time, it’s 35 now). It’s also Wife week here for our fantasy football league and the bets are serious: the loser has to take the kids out trick or treating when it will be 30 out. The winner will be providing the hot boozy coffee. Menus are still revolving about what big kiddo can eat one handed to keep her new shortie cast clean. Her insistence at having a meatball sub for lunch one day after getting her new cast was rather entertaining. Actuals and plans for 2 adults and 2 growing girls:
Sun 22: Roasted butternut squash and garlic soup to make a dent in the CSA end of season bounty. I loved the roasted garlic twist on it. The rest of my crowd ate very slowly. https://alexandracooks.com/2023/10/15/roasted-butternut-squash-and-garlic-soup/
Mon 23: Both kiddos skated at the same time. It’s so neat to see them on the ice enjoying it together. Frozen pot pies Costco
Tues 24: Sloppy sloppy Turkey joes on hot dog buns. Peas. assorted random leftover sides. Last CSA pick up for the season
Weds 25: Having a rough day. Very proud of Mr Autumm for making a decision and ordering take out
Thurs 26: Chicken sandwiches ala Tyson frozen, coleslaw, assorted crudités. I was planning gyros but the cucumbers at the store were past their prime and then some
Tonight: Both kiddos skate. Leftovers from Wednesday’s take out
Sat 28: Little kiddo at a friend’s birthday party. Probably turkey larb as she is not a fan of it
Sun 29: Hungarian goulash with dumplings. A mr Autumm request. https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/beef_goulash_with_dumplings/
Mon 30: Both kiddos skate. Probably leftovers/clear out the fridge
Tues 31: A halloween tradition: Meatballs in the crock pot for after trick or treating.
Take care everyone and stay healthy! Just got a text from my brother: he and his wife have COVID. Stupid germs!
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I’ve had pretty good luck subbing pumpkin/squash puree for bananas in a muffin or quick bread situation.
I don’t recall where I got the recipe (silly internets), but it was almost 20 years ago and a pumpkin cranberry cookie was not good. They were worthy of the confectionary failures post.
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I recommend it–it’s delicious!
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How is it possibly going to be November this week?
For two adults in San Diego:
Breakfasts: Will give these a try tomorrow: https://www.budgetbytes.com/cheese-danish/
S: (tonight) Seafood restaurant before watching the San Diego Symphony present the Empire Strikes Back in concert. Our first time at the Rady Shell, which is an outdoor concert venue on San Diego Bay. Incredible experience - seafood
Su: Chicken sausage, spinach and ricotta pizza (purchased crust) with salad
M: Beef stew (carrots, potatoes, peas, onions) - does this count as soup?
T: Bean and veggie quesadillas with salad and avocado - vegetarian
W: Leftovers from freezer (TBD) before an evening event
Th: Beef pot pies, made with leftover stew
F: Old school tacos with all the fixings
Have a good week!
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